


Of Flags and Bracelets (aka: What to Do When Your Best Friend's Ghost Bassist Comes Out to You)

by TakingOverMidnight3482



Series: Julie and the Phantoms One-Shots: Ghostly Mishaps [9]
Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: Alex and Flynn are Supportive Beans, Bi Flynn, Coming Out, Everyone Is Gay, Friendship, Gen, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Queers Travel In Packs, bi reggie, post season one
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-27
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:15:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26673511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TakingOverMidnight3482/pseuds/TakingOverMidnight3482
Summary: Reggie is slowly starting to figure himself out, so he turns to the two people he thinks are going to understand the most: Flynn and Alex. Flynn's starting to wonder how much paper she's going to go through trying to talk to these boys.
Relationships: Alex & Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms), Flynn & Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms)
Series: Julie and the Phantoms One-Shots: Ghostly Mishaps [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1925116
Comments: 48
Kudos: 983





	Of Flags and Bracelets (aka: What to Do When Your Best Friend's Ghost Bassist Comes Out to You)

**Author's Note:**

> This kind of goes along with "Cold Spaghetti," but it's not necessary to read that one first. Just a couple of nods to that fic that I incorporated in here. 
> 
> I really like Alex and Reggie's dynamic canonly, and I genuinely think they'd both get along with Flynn SUPER well. I really hope we get her interacting with the guys more in Season 2 - most of her "time" with them was spent not communicating and I think they'd be great friends.

When Flynn walked into the garage, she found it empty, which was only unusual because Julie told her she’d be practicing with the guys at three. It was 2:50, so they still had time, but usually she’d already be rehearsing. It was kind of her thing these days.

She shrugged and shut the door behind her – Julie would be there soon, so she might as well stay. Her feet carried her to the couch and she was about to sit when she paused, considering. “This seat taken?” she asked, feeling a little dumb.

The pillow on the other end of the couch shifted and she grinned, plopping down in the empty spot and kicking her shoes up on the coffee table. “Who is it?” she asked, dropping her bag on the floor and taking her phone from her pocket, eyes still locked across the couch.

Soft bass music filled the air and her smile eased. “Hey Reggie.”

His chuckle echoed through the room, soft, barely there, but she could still hear it. It was better if they were singing while they were playing without Julie – when they did that, it was like they were speaking to her at a normal volume. But even just talking while playing, they’d found, Flynn could hear them. It was just much softer. “The others running late?” she asked, glancing back down at her phone and liking a post from her cousin.

Reggie hummed. “Julie and Luke are finishing up some lyrics in her room. Felt like I was intruding,” he said, and Flynn could almost see the wrinkle his nose would make at the words if he was visible. “And Alex and Willie are hanging out downtown. He might swing by for rehearsal.”

Flynn smiled. “That’d be cool. I mean…not that I’d know he was here. So you’re just chilling by yourself then?”

“Not anymore,” Reggie said. Flynn could hear the smile in his voice and she kicked in his general direction, grinning. “What are you doing here?”

“Came to watch the rehearsal,” Flynn said, nodding to the equipment around the room. Now that she looked, she could see Reggie’s bass missing. It was weird to think she could see the things if they let them go, but not if they were holding them. “I was on a date, but it didn’t go great.”

“Oooooh,” Reggie taunted. The bass shifted to something a little deeper. “Spill. Do we need to go haunt someone for you?”

Flynn rolled her eyes and shut her phone off. “Nah, nothing like that. She’s nice, just not my type. Theater girl, and no offense to them, but I’m not a theater person,” she snorted.

Reggie was silent for a moment, and Flynn found herself shifting on the couch, wondering if she’d said something wrong. “I thought you liked guys?” Reggie said after a long minute.

Flynn frowned. “I like guys and girls. I’m bisexual.”

There was more silence, and Flynn took a breath, glancing back down at her phone. She’d been casual with it because Luke and Reggie were so chill with Alex. She was beginning to wonder if it was a mistake. “If that’s a problem-”

“No,” Reggie said quickly, the guitar twanging uncomfortably. Flynn watched the cushions move until the pillow directly next to her dipped. “No, no, sorry. Just surprised me, is all.”

Flynn relaxed and leaned her elbow against the back of the couch, eyeing where she assumed Reggie’s face would be if she could see him. “I wear rainbows literally all the time,” she snorted.

To emphasize her point, she lifted her wrist to show off the rainbow bracelet circling it. The band tugged away from her skin and snapped back gently, and a smile crossed her face. “Sorry, thought you knew. I figured Julie must have told you, she knows I’m fine with that.”

The bass continued plucking in the room, aimless notes that didn’t really form a recognizable melody. Flynn assumed it was probably an old song of theirs. Reggie, however, stayed uncharacteristically quiet. When they were chilling – and she chilled with the guys a lot now, even outside of rehearsal – it was nearly impossible to get him to shut up. “Hey,” she said, waving her hand lightly in his direction, hoping she wasn’t accidentally waving it through him. “You good fam?”

The music started playing a little faster and Reggie’s voice suddenly brightened. “Yeah! Hey Alex, Willie. Flynn beat you guys here.”

Flynn frowned for just a moment, watching as the pillows sprang back to their normal shape and the sound of the bass moved across the room. She twisted, studying the space Reggie usually stood in. “Hey Alex. Willie,” she said, nodding in the general direction of the drums.

Julie burst in then, looking a little frazzled, multiple sheets of music clutched in her hands, and gave her a quick wave and a grin. The other side of the couch dipped again, probably Willie, and Flynn offered the ghost a gentle smile before turning her gaze back to the rehearsal.

When the guys popped into sight, she looked over at Reggie. He was singing and playing, per usual, but he was studying her when she looked. She tilted her head, curious, and Reggie just offered her a small smile and then turned to Luke.

He didn’t look at her for the rest of rehearsal.

~~

Flynn wouldn’t lie – Reggie was very, very cute. A little bit of a himbo. Very her type. But he was also dead, and she also had a huge crush on Julie, so she saw him more as a very close friend, especially since she’d started hanging with the group and they’d found easier ways to communicate. It stung that he ignored her for all of rehearsal and the whole time after.

She was back in her room now, scribbling out her frustration in her lyric book, when she saw the bi-pride flag on her wall lift as if it was being examined. She hesitated, setting her pencil down slowly. “Reggie?” she guessed.

The flag jolted and then fell back into it’s hanging position, almost guiltily, and she drew a knee up to her chin. “What’s up?”

Silence, and she assumed he didn’t have his guitar on him. Her instruments were in the basement studio, so she flipped to a clean page of her lyric book and slid the journal across to the open space of her desk. Her pencil lifted, jittering nervously, and the tip pressed to the page lightly.

_How did you know?_

Reggie had nice handwriting – small and loopy, the lines connecting with each other almost like he was trying not to write in cursive. Flynn stared at the question for a moment, eyebrows furrowing. “Know what?”

She glanced up at the air where she thought he was, only to have her gaze dragged towards her bi flag as it shifted again. Something in her chest loosened, and she couldn’t help the small smile that crossed her face. “What, that I was bisexual?”

The pencil tapped on the notebook once, startling her, and she chuckled, turning to grab her laptop. She opened it up, well aware of the slightly chilly, neck tingling presence close to her side. She knew Reggie had been learning a lot about computers, so she kept it slow so he could follow. Pulled up Google. “I didn’t know,” she admitted, shrugging. “But when I was like…13? I realized that Zendaya was like, _super_ hot. Like more hot than straight girls noticed.”

She pulled up a photo of the woman, certain that Reggie had no idea who she was, and her pencil tapped the book a couple times. She chuckled, taking that as agreement, and then erased the search. “But like…so are you guys,” she teased, pulling up their band photo. “Not that I knew that until recently.”

Her chair spun gently, likely Reggie’s version of shoving her shoulder, and she laughed, slowing the spin with her foot and turning to face where she guessed he was. “Why? Thinking about it?”

The pencil was floating in mid-air, flicking in a nervous, quick fashion. It started moving back and forth across the room, pacing, and Flynn tilted her head. “Dude. It’s chill. You’re allowed to think about it. Obviously you guys are chill with me and Alex and Willie.”

The pencil moved back to the notebook, and she watched with an etched brow.

_It’s different. I_

The pencil stopped moving, hesitating, and Flynn reached out, gently covering the top of it and glancing up at the empty air. “You?” she offered, soft.

She removed her hand and Reggie started writing again, a little more hurried.

_Luke’s kinda cute._

Flynn burst into giggles, grinning. “Um, duh. You’d have to be blind not to see that,” she snorted.

_He’s my best friend. That’s weird, right?_

She could tell Reggie was anxious, based on how the pencil moved, on how his writing got sloppier. And she understood completely where he was coming from. “No way,” she assured him. She took a breath. “I’ve had a thing for Julie for like a year now.”

The pencil froze, before pointing at her accusingly. Flynn’s lips ticked up in a smile, her cheeks warming. “Yeah, shut up.” She got serious for a second. “I mean…I get it. How you feel. You feel wrong, right? Like you’re being creepy?”

Reggie doodled a frowny face on the paper and Flynn tilted her head. “You’re not. Being creepy, I mean. It’s no creepier than Luke having a thing for Julie. Probably less weird actually, since you guys are like…dead. No offense.”

_None taken._

Flynn smiled and leaned on her hand. “Is that how you feel then? Like…bi? You don’t have to put a label on yourself, you know.”

 _I know._ The writing hesitated for a moment. _It feels right. It’s just my parents. Weren’t as bad as Alex’s, but they weren’t like…supportive of that stuff._

Flynn hummed. She wished she could hug the ghost. “That sucks, dude. But they’re not here now, you know. You’ve got us. Julie and the guys especially, but…I mean if it matters, you’ve got me too.”

Reggie drew a heart onto the page and Flynn smiled. _It matters. Thanks, Flynn._

The pencil fiddled for another second above the page, tapping the paper absently. It lifted, dropped again, and Flynn tilted her head while he thought. _You think I should tell them?_

“That’s up to you,” she said immediately, flickering her eyes up to where she hoped Reggie’s gaze was. “I won’t say anything if you don’t want. But you and I both know they’d all be supportive.”

 _Okay. And I won’t say anything about your Julie crush._ He doodled a winky face and Flynn found herself heating up again, ducking her head as a smile played on her lips.

She hadn’t told anyone about how she felt about Julie. Telling Reggie felt…freeing, almost. “I appreciate that,” she said, twisting her hands in her lap. “And I won’t say anything about your Luke crush. You’re welcome to come gush to me if you ever want,” she teased, peeking at the notebook.

 _I wish I could give you a hug,_ Reggie wrote instead of the expected snark, and that made a lump settle in Flynn’s throat. She smiled and looked up. “Me too.”

He tugged on one of the strings on her hoodie instead, and she lifted a hand to grip it tightly. She could almost hear Reggie’s chuckle as the tip of the pencil settled on her lyric book again. _Thanks, Flynn._

“Back 'atcha,” she snorted.

He doodled a smiling ghost on her page and then the pencil laid down. She could tell by the sudden lack of chills that he’d left, and she sighed, leaning over and putting her book and pencil away. She twisted, turning instead to the drawers of her desk and pulling out a box of friendship bracelet string, dragging out the pink, purple, and blue.

She hoped ghosts could accept gifts.

~~

Julie was with her dad getting Carlos from baseball practice. Luke was visiting his parents (he’d insisted on going alone). And Willie, though he’d escaped Caleb’s suspicion initially, was trying to stay low for a while, so he was limiting how often he hung around with the guys despite the fact that they hadn’t seen Caleb in a little over two weeks.

Which meant Reggie was alone with Alex in the garage, both of them casually messing around on their respective instruments.

Reggie had been the first person Alex came out to – it wasn’t a fun night, from what Reggie remembered. He’d been kicked out, come to Reggie in tears. But it had been okay, in the end. Reggie was supportive; he loved Alex, how could he not?

Now, after having sat with his thoughts for the last week since talking to Flynn, after she’d pulled him aside to press a bisexual bracelet into his hands that he was amazed he could actually wear, he was kind of anxious. He tugged at his bass strings before setting it against his knees and leaning over it, running his fingers over the bracelet on his wrist, hidden by his sleeves. Alex would be chill. Reggie knew that better than he knew himself.

So why was his metaphorical heart still pounding in terror?

“Hey Alex?” he said, staring at the floor. He dragged his flannel sleeve down over his hand and plucked at the bass strings again.

“What’s up?” Alex asked, squinting at a piece of music he’d been working on. When Reggie didn’t answer right away, he lowered it and looked up, eyebrows lifting. “Reg?”

Reggie furrowed his brows, settling his gaze on a spot on the floor. He focused on the feeling of the couch under him, the guitar in his hands, the comfort of the bracelet around his wrist. “I-I…can I talk to you?”

Alex fully set the sheet music down now, lowering his drum sticks and tilting his head. “Yeah, man, of course. Everything good?”

Reggie pressed his lips into a thin line. He kind of felt like he might vomit, and he wondered if this was how Alex felt when he’d come out to him. Why was it so _hard_?

Motion made him look up to find Alex sinking onto the couch next to him, looking worried. Reggie knew why – he didn’t get serious often. He tried to keep things lighthearted, tried not to bring down the room. The guys knew if he was being quiet and anxious about something, it was important. “C’mon, Reginald,” Alex said with a soft smile. “What’s up? You okay?”

“I’m fine,” Reggie reassured him. “Just…nervous.”

Alex hummed, reaching out and holding out his hand. Upturned, fingers splayed loosely. He wiggled them, and Reggie was thrown back to the night Alex had come out to him. His chest tightened, and he laced their hands together. “It’s me,” Alex said, very soft, and Reggie let a watery laugh out. Alex squeezed. “Just me.”

He knew – Reggie was certain he knew. He’d been distant the last week, he knew that. Knew that Luke and Alex had been shooting him confused looks now and again, knew that even Julie had begun to realize something was wrong. Flynn had been his constant that week, easing his nerves and helping him talk out his emotions in a judgement free space. Not that the guys or Julie would ever judge him.

“Anything to do with this?” Alex asked, and then his thumb was sliding up Reggie’s wrist to hook under the bracelet Flynn had given him. 

Reggie managed a nod. “Yeah,” he choked. “Flynn gave it to me.”

“It’s the bi flag, right?” Alex asked, gentle. He pushed Reggie’s sleeve up just enough to see it fully, turning their hands, still linked.

Reggie nodded again, something in him cracking at how careful Alex was being. A hand lifted, cupped his face, and his gaze was dragged to Alex’s. His eyes were bright, sparkling, full of warmth. “Hey, man. I’m proud of you.”

That fully broke Reggie, a wave of relief rushing over him as he crumbled against his friend, and he gripped onto Alex’s hoodie tightly, trembling in his grasp. “Thank you,” he murmured, and Alex rubbed his back soothingly. “I-I don’t know _why_ t-that was so _hard_. It’s you.”

Alex chuckled, the sound rumbling through his throat and making Reggie relax a little. “We grew up in the 80s, Reg,” he said, a little bit of bitterness seeping into his voice. “People weren’t exactly as chill as they are now.”

“Yeah but its-”

Alex pushed him back, cupping his face in his hands and swiping at the tears on his cheeks. “No buts. It’s hard, dude. You know how long it took me to come out to Julie? Almost a whole month, Reg. I knew how chill she was, I saw how everything had changed. But it still scared me. A lot.”

He let his hands slide down until he was holding Reggie’s hands, tight. Squeezed. “So I get it. I understand why it was hard, even if it was ‘just’ me,” he chuckled. Paused. “Flynn the only other one who knows?”

Reggie nodded and Alex’s lips quirked in a smile. “I won’t say anything until you want me to.”

His shoulders slumped in relief. “Thanks, man.”

Alex nodded, glancing down at the bracelet again. Shyly, he looked up. “Think she’d make me one?”

“You have one,” Reggie said, confused, lifting up Alex’s right hand to nod at the very subtle bracelet there.

Alex chuckled and set their hands back down, still not letting go. “Yeah, but it’s pretty small. That ones a nice size. Can’t have too many, right? You’ve seen Julie’s bracelets.”

Reggie snorted and Alex stood, tugging him up with him before pulling him into another, more proper hug, hand cupping the back of Reggie’s neck in a comforting way. Reggie leaned into the grip and sighed, feeling at home.

~~

When the bass started up out of nowhere, Flynn froze, hands hovering over her keyboard. Her parents weren’t home, so she had the studio to herself. “Reggie?”

The drums kicked in and a smile slid over her face. “Alex. Hi. Anyone else I should know about?”

“Nope,” came Alex’s chuckle. “Just us. What’re you playing?”

Flynn glanced at her phone, smile widening. “I was uh…I was trying to see if I could write a piano piece to go with Now or Never. Julie gave me one of your CDs, I thought it’d be a cool gift to surprise her with.”

She heard Reggie’s tiny laugh and shot him a glower before glancing back at the drums, watching the sticks dance across the tops. It baffled her a little that she couldn’t see Reggie’s bass but she _could_ see Alex's drumming, though maybe it was because it was her set and not his. “What are you guys doing here?”

“Alex saw the wristband you made me,” Reggie said softly, bass notes getting stronger as he and Alex both shifted into playing Now or Never at half tempo. Flynn’s eyebrows shot up and she looked between the drums and the sound of the bass. “Wanted to know if you’d make him one.”

Her grin widened and she found the place the guys were playing at, joining in with what she had so far. “I would love to. Willie want one?”

She heard Alex’s chuckle. “I think he’d love one.”

The bass shifted across the room until it was directly next to Flynn, and she could feel the cold air as Reggie leaned over her shoulder. She stopped playing, fingers relaxed on the keys. “You’ve got a good start,” he noted, and her screen moved as he scrolled down her notes. “Want us to help?”

She cracked her neck and smiled. “I’d like that a lot, I can’t quite find the rhythm I want for the bridge.”

The cold air paused, settled against her temple very lightly, and Flynn’s lips parted in surprise. “Thank you,” Reggie murmured, low enough that she knew Alex couldn’t hear it over his drums.

She warmed, tracking the bass music as it moved back across the room, and then turned again to her piano and cleared her throat. “So…from one?”

Reggie plucked his bass strings enthusiastically. “Show us what you got, Flynnagin.”

“That is absolutely not my name, and it is _not_ sticking.”

“Well, _now_ it is.”

**Author's Note:**

> I really like the headcanon that the guys would threaten to haunt anyone who hurt the Molina family or Flynn. They're protective like that.


End file.
